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My wife wanted a "New Beetle" so 3 months ago I purchaed her a plain 99 GL with 2.0L. I recently purchased a 2000 GLX with the 1.8T as an upgrade.

Here's the problem --
The car runs good with the exception of a lack of power at 4000 rpm and higher -- it revs but just seems to make more noise than forward movement. Below 4000 rpm it really seems powerful.

The car was this way when I purchased it (has 86000 mi) and had no lights on on the dash. It now has the Check Engine light and is giving code p0411. My local mechanic called a company called "Have Scanner will Travel" and they cleaned the MAF Sensor and the light was off for 2 days (30 miles) and now is doing the p0411 code again. The secondary air pump is fairly new (3K miles) and I replaced the nylon covered vac hoses. I have now ordered a new MAF sensor from 1VW Parts and will replace it (can it really be cleaned?).

I have two concerns -
1.P0411 code error -- not a big issue but hopefully the MAF will cure.

2. Lack of power above 4K rpm. The plain 99 2.0L seems faster at higher rpm... My wife acts like she does not notice but it drives me nuts... The 1.8T is quick off the line but to accelerate fastest currently you must let up to keep rpm below 4K...

Any thoughts? I have a Vag-Com ordered since my local mechanic and "Have Scanner will Travel" seem to just charge money (approx $400) and not fix the problem. My local VW dealership is almost too high to consider yet.

Senior Member

Unplug the MAF and drive around. Does all of your power come back and your EPC light come on? If so it's a bad MAF and get a new one. Any wierd noises of fluttering air pressure? Check the spark plugs and maybe the diverter valve( farting noise sometimes and other times no sound). Also the lower intercooler hose has been known to pop off inside the passenger front wheelwell but you'd probably hear whooshing noise with that . Good luck finding the problem. The 1.8T should feel like a beast compared to the 2.0

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The car does have a vibrating - farting like noise occasionally. I'll try the diverter valve also.

I am looking on 1stvwparts.com and the "diverter valve" shows as $4.40 and says "secondary air injection system as the category" -- that seems too cheap. Other places are $30 at minimum and nice ones are $140...

Premium Member

It sounds to me like you like your beetle to go fast. If that is the case, you would probably benefit from an aftermarket DV, especially after you put in the inevitable chip.

I use a GFB Hybrid BOV instead of a regular DV, and it's worked great for a few years now. Not a recommendation...I'm just saying.

Lots of folks like the Forge DV or uh...there's some other brand that is popular, but I forget the name. Like I said, I've had my BOV going for a while now, so I kind of quit paying attention to who makes what...

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I have now replaced the DV valve and MAF and did a reset with Vag-Com. Drove approx 1/8 mile then went back to no power at 4k and above.

Still shows code 17963 - charge limit exceeded on vag-com.

Time to dig deeper. Any reco's? I am thinking the N75 valve (mine is stock -- appears original). I looked at the hose going to the wastegate for cracks -- it looked Ok but I can not really be sure since it is wrapped in a silver vinyl like cover.

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I changed the MAF ($38 from 1st VW parts (Auburn VW)), Diverter valve (Hyperboost), Wastegate Control Valve (referred to as N75 -- I paid way too much -- $107 from local VW stealership), all hoses ($30 or less for various vac lines).

Basically the lack of power issue was probably mostly the hose to the wastegate - it had a rip. The diverter was likely bad also since it was making bad sounds.

The MAF sensor took care of the "seconday air flow" CEL.

My Vag-Com is showing no codes now -- I am happy.

I now know what was meant about it feeling like a beast. The 1.8T has great pull (torque) stock. I can not imagine what 230hp feels like -- must be good! I'll probaly start upgrades in Mid 06. My wife will think it is a rocket without the upgrades.

Weird thing to me is that I had a Buick Regal in 1988 that made 275hp (350 engine that was installed when V6 blew) -- it never felt as powerful as the VW 1.8.

Looking to replace the 1.8 L turbo in my 2000 beetle. Kind of got screwed on the purchase of the car. But I wanted a project.
I changed the oil and there was a lot ( I mean a whole lot) of metal shaving in the oil. So the motor is not long for this world.
Just looking for advise on the pit...

I watched a YouTube video on this and ordered the $38 part because it seemed like a fairly easy repair. Then I got a quote for $661 from the local mechanic. Did I under estimate the difficulty of this repair?
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So my 2002 Beetle Turbo S trunk hasn’t been opening when I hit the button. It beeps twice but nothing else. I pulled the trim off of the trunk and can open it manually but don’t know what to look for to ID the issue. I did look and the motor that pushes the arm to unlock does not move when I hit...

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